Municipalities (Nova Roma)

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Contents


<<STILL UNDER DEVELOPMENT>>

Introduction

Nova Roma encourages the formation of officially recognized autonomous communities throughout the provinces of the Republic. These are referred to generally as municipalities (in Latin: civitas oppidana, res publica oppidana, municipalitas). Different types and sizes of municipalities will go by different names. Oppidum was a general term for cities and townships in the Roman empire and is still sometimes used in Nova Roma to refer to local communities.

Although citizens can always meet casually without a formal municipal construct, local groups must meet stringent and authentic measures to be formally recognized as a municipalitas to gain the privileges and recognition associated with such groups. The policy on forming local groups also opens the possibility of confederation with other res publicae, civitates, and various forms of related communities, which would support the function and mission of Nova Roma.

The basis of forming local communities, or municipalities, comes from the lex Fabia de oppidis et municipiis, overhauled by the lex Arria de castris et coloniis in Q. Arrio (III) A. Tullia cos. ‡ MMDCCLXXIV a.u.c. If you are seeking to establish or formally recognize a reenactment legion, gladiatorial school or other military reenactment group, refer to the lex Aurelia de legionibus and lex Aurelia de familiis gladiatoriis et ludis gladiatoriis.

How to use this guide

Whether citizens are seeking to establish a new local community, or upgrade the status of an old one, this page will help you identify the terms, features and civil rights that are best suited for each specific community.

Follow the process offered on this page to arrive at the correct community definition and the requirements to establish or form that community.

Currently Recognized Municipalities of Nova Roma

List of municipia Nova Romana

List of vici Novi Romani

List of pre-municipal local communities


Guide: Selecting the right municipality

There are seven forms of municipality and three affiliation statuses giving a total of 21 different types of recognized municipality in Nova Roma. Follow the steps below to determine the correct and most suitable municipality for your local community.


Step I: Determine the number of members

A municipality has to have at least five (5) members. To ensure the ongoing efficacy of the municipality, it is always best to have more, but the minimum amount is only five. It is worthy to note that those "members" do not necessarily need to be full Nova Roma citizens either - this is covered in Step III.

Municipality types with 5-14 members:
  • Burgus / Castellum - a small military municipality of undetermined nature.
  • Vicus Conciliabulum - a simple voluntary association of members without formal approval by the state.
  • Vicus Forum - a community of members formed by an edictum of a magistrate or governor for administrative purposes.
Municipality types with 15 or more members:
  • Castra / Castrum - a military municipality with heavy focus on military reenactment.
  • Canabae - a military municipality with an equal or predominate civilian reenactment focus.
  • Colonia - (a colony) a municipality not formed in the territory of a pre-existing city (usually upgraded from a military municipality) and may be a macronational corporation.
  • Municipium - (federated state) a formally recognized unaffiliated club, association or macronational corporation.


Step II: Determine the government type

A municipality can either be a civilian municipality with civilian democratic self-government, or a military municipality with a military-style governing structure. Guidance on Roman military structure can be found on our page about the legions.

Civilian Municipalities:
  • Vicus Conciliabulum
  • Vicus Forum
  • Colonia
  • Municipium
Civilian municipalities have two equal mayors, elected annually, that will have different titles depending on the size of the municipality. In a smaller vicus, these mayors are generally called magister vici. For a colonia or municipium, these elected officials are known as duumvir iure dicundo (alternatively duovir, feminine duumvira). Other officers can be elected or appointed by the mayors, or as defined by the constitutio (charter, vicus) or lex municipalis or lex coloniae of the municipality. The mayors have the following rights and duties, as specified by the relevant charter which shall distribute the different areas of responsibility and different levels of power and authority for the local magistrates:
i. To govern and administer the city community, the projects, programs, the entire civic life and all kinds of activities, according to the mission of Nova Roma;
ii. To exercise iurisdictio, the ius coercitionis, the ius intercessionis, the ius edicendi within the municipality;
iii. To have the honor of being preceded by two lictors (colonia and municipium only);
iv. To maintain the local album civium, the album decurionum and the tabularium;
v. To administer justice and conduct judicial procedures between members of the city community (colonia and municipium only);
vi. To ensure public order, to regulate public space and the market, to see to the maintenance of public facilities, conduct of public games, festivals and gatherings, and to administer the law;
vii. To issue those edicta necessary to carry out those tasks which they are mandated by the law to engage;
viii. To call the local comitia and the ordo decurionum and preside over their meetings (colonia and municipium only);
ix. To pronounce intercessio against another local magistrate of equal or lesser authority;
x. To appoint apparitores to assist with administrative and other tasks, as they shall see fit.
Military Municipalities:
  • Burgus / Castellum
  • Castra / Castrum
  • Canabae
Military municipalities have commanders, not elected magistrates. These are a form of military governor (provost), termed variously but generally known as a praefectus (praefectus castrorum, praefectus canabarum, praefectus burgi etc. determined by the name of the municipality, and by the consensus of the members). The commander may also eligible for other titles that can be approved by the Law Revision Committee of Classicists and Latinists. The praefectus of the municipality is appointed and removed by the governor of the province, or by the chief commanding officer of any associated reenactment unit to which the municipality belongs. The praefecti and other officers in the military municipality, as defined in the regula (charter), may have the following rights and duties:
i. To govern and administer the military city community, the projects, programs, the entire civic life and all kinds of activities, according to the mission of Nova Roma;
ii. To exercise the ius coercitionis within the municipality;
iii. To maintain the local album civium and the tabularium (see Step IV);
iv. To ensure public order, to regulate public space and the market, to see to the maintenance of public facilities, conduct of public games, festivals and gatherings, and to administer the law;
v. To issue operational orders necessary to carry out those tasks which they are mandated by the law to engage;
vi. To request the provincial governor to appoint apparitores for the praefectus to assist with administrative and other tasks.


Step III: Determine the civil right status

Municipalities have different civil rights statuses according to the degree of affiliation to Nova Roma. The initial civil rights status of the communities may be changed by the Senate or by the Comitia of Nova Roma if the community changes its characteristics or is otherwise upgraded as an award for distinguished service. The basis of the rights are determined by the percentage of Nova Roman citizens in the municipality to all registered members. For definitions on the different citizen types in Nova Roma, see the page on citizens. The lex Petronia de novis civibus offers opportunities for whole communities to receive various tiers of citizenship depending on their municipality civil rights.

Municipalities with 75% or more "Full" citizens:
Municipalities of Nova Roman citizens - These municipalities will have the label civium Novorum Romanorum. The proportion of cives optimo iure (full citizens) among the founders may not be less than 75% of total registered members.
Municipalities with between 50% and 74% "Full" citizens:
Allied municipalities with the ius Latinum - These municipalities will have the label Latinus -a, -um (according to the grammatical form of the accompanied term). Those members of the municipality who are not "full" Nova Roman citizens receive the civitas Latina in Nova Roma also known as ius Latinum, by virtue of being a member of such a municipality.
Municipalities with less than 50% "Full" citizens:
Allied municipalities of non-citizens and allied commonwealths, symbolic states or corporations of non-citizens - Composed either of non-citizens only, or alternatively, Nova Roman citizens and non-citizens where less than 50% of the founders are full Nova Roman citizens. Non-citizens, like their municipality, are defined as socii, and the municipality legal denomination shall be civitas foederata. Municipium or colonia may not be assigned this type of municipality status. This civil right status affords (often pre-existing) local groups or geographically undefined broader organizations measure to determine their own internal structure, charter and bylaws independently from Nova Roma (they will still maintain a foedus (charter) to demonstrate their cooperation with Nova Roma).

Step IV: Establishing the municipality formal documentation

All municipalities have several common features that are generally submitted to an authority for approval or endorsement. These are:

  • An album civium (roll of citizens) that lists the members of the local community.
  • A proposed treaty or charter, the name of which varies depending on the municipality: the foedus, for allied non-citizen municipalities or commonwealths; the regula for military municipalities; the constitutio for the civilian municipality of a vicus; and the lex municipii or lex coloniae for the civilian municipalities of a municipium or colonia.
  • A written "Action Plan" with a list of a projected system of annual activities for the community.

Once drafted and agreed to by the members, a representative will submit it to their local governor who will forward the documentation to the Law Revision Committee of Classicists and Latinists for verification.

Retrieved from "http://novaroma.org/nr/Municipalities_(Nova_Roma)"
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